Thursday, February 16, 2012

Uzbekistan

U.S. NGO Loses Appeal Of Uzbek Closure Order

(RFE/RL)

August 18, 2006 - Reports from Tashkent say a U.S.-based nonprofit group focused on local empowerment and sustainable development has lost its appeal of an Uzbek court's closure order.

TEXT SIZE - +

August 18, 2006

The pro-government press-uz.info website says the appeals chamber of the Tashkent City Court upheld a July 26 ruling that requires Winrock International to end its operations in Uzbekistan.

Uzbek authorities accuse the group of publishing a booklet titled "Islam And Women" that they say misquotes the Koran. They also accuse the group of shooting video footage that "distorts conditions for Uzbek women."

Winrock International's website describes itself on its website as "a nonprofit organization that works with people in the United States and around the world to increase economic opportunity, sustain natural resources, and protect the environment."

It lists its areas of focus as agriculture and rural development, education and empowerment, and democracy and governance, among other things.

Uzbek courts have ordered the closure of several Western nongovernmental organizations in recent months -- accusing them of violating national laws.

Military Bases In Central Asia

Click on the map for an enlarged image.

PROJECTING POWER: Since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the onset of the war on terror, Central Asia has played an important role in military-security issues. At times, Russia and the West have clashed over questions related to military deployments. RFE/RL has provided extensive coverage of this increasingly important geopolitical matter.

U.S. Official Discusses Policy In Central Asia

Kazakhstan Looks To Build On Alliance With Putin

The Geopolitical Game In Central Asia

Dushanbe Conference Focuses On Regional Security

Russia And U.S. Often At Odds In Central Asia

China-Russia Bloc Challenges U.S. In Region

THE COMPLETE STORY: Click on the icon to view a dedicated webpage bringing together all of RFE/RL's coverage of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

Attack Of The Cloned Websites...This Time In Uzbekistan

A website has been set up to mirror the site of RFE/RL's Uzbek Service, in what could be a phishing scheme to harvest user information. More

A vendor in the central Bosnian town of Zenica sells heart-shaped cushions with proclamations of love for 1 euro each.

Love It (Or Hate It), It's Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day, the Western holiday celebrating love, has become a global phenomenon over the past two decades. The fall of communism and the emergence of the Internet have helped February 14 become something of an unofficial international day of romance. However, not all the passions the holiday stirs are related to love. While some countries have openly embraced the holiday, others are attempting to ban it or replace it with local customs. More

Production and distribution of rap music is not officially banned, but it

Yo! Turkmen Rappers Flip The Script On Repression

For a growing number of Turkmen youth, rap music has become a way to express their daily struggles and inspire political change in one of the world's most oppressive countries. More